"Turkey is
definitely in a tough neighborhood"
Turkish Ambassador to US speaks at Fletcher
By Ben Ball, Office of Public Affairs
As the war in Afghanistan continues with its various twists and
turns,
Turkey, an important US ally, is pledged to continue to play "the
lead
role," according to the Turkish Ambassador to the United States.
Speakng to Fletcher students on Mar. 14, Amb. Osman Faruk Logoglu
said:
"We are at the forefront of the war, as a friend, as an ally, and
in
reciprocation for the United States’ understanding of our own
fight
against terrorism."
Turkey, which currently has some 270 troops in Afghanistan, is
negotiating with the United States and the United Kingdom to take
over
command of the International Security Assistance Force (ISAF)
based in
Kabul. Logoglu stated that under Turkish command, that force could
grow
to 4,500 troops from over 10 countries.
Referring to the mandate of that force, Logoglu said "the general
preference is for a force that is limited to Kabul. My feeling,
however, is that Afghanistan is a whole country. If you are going
to do
a good job, you need a large force -- 25,000 at least."
Logoglu told his audience that a Turkish-led ISAF would help to
ensure
peace on the ground while rebuilding the country. "Turkey is
eminently
poised to prepare an army for Afghanistan, to build agriculture in
Afghanistan. These are areas in which we can play a significant
role,"
he said.
No stranger to peacekeeping operations, Turkish generals
previously
led the UN force in Somalia. Logoglu stressed the importance of a
Muslim country to take a leadership role in Afghanistan as a
symbolic
gesture to that largely traditional society.
"Turkey has an excellent resonance with the people of
Afghanistan," he
said. "Turkey is a country where democracy, Islam, and secularism
coexist."
Still, the Turkish Ambassador admitted that Turkey’s role in the
war on
terror does not have unanimous domestic support. "There are people
in
Turkey who oppose sending troops, but the majority decided to do
it.
This was decided by the parliament," he said.
Logoglu also addressed the difficulties Turkey must face as a
front-line state in the war on terror. "Turkey is definitely in a
tough
neighborhood," he cautioned. "There is not one conflict in the
world
today which is not in Turkey’s vicinity. Turkey is at the
epicenter of
all these conflicts. We will have to resolve our issues with our
neighbors in spite of our neighbors."
One of those difficult neighbors is Iraq, which Logoglu warned is
a
sensitive issue for the region. He said that US intervention in
Iraq
would "cause the region to experience a lot of difficulties. This
will
upset the balance of all Iraq’s neighbors. In a larger economic
and
political sense, this could be a major problem for the region."
Logoglu told his audience that "there is still time" to coerce the
Iraqi
regime into accepting UN-mandated weapons inspectors. "If that
doesn’t
happen, what will occur? I cannot say at this moment. It will
depend<
upon [Vice President] Cheney’s visit," Logoglu said.
|
|
